Rumor of the Day: Laura Dern joining Twin Peaks in well-known role

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Longtime David Lynch favorite Laura Dern may join the Twin Peaks revival in a role fans are familiar with -- sort of.

According to TV Line (via Consequence of Sound), Dern has joined the third season of Lynch's classic series in a "pivotal role" that the site speculates could be Diane, the assistant to FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan). What's interesting about this is that Diane was never seen or heard in either the original series or the Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me feature film -- Cooper just dictated notes or messages to her on his tape recorder or over the phone.

Dern, a two-time Oscar nominee and three-time Golden Globe winner, has been sort of a muse for Lynch throughout the years. He first cast her opposite MacLachlan in his classic 1986 film Blue Velvet -- which would make casting her in Twin Peaks a very cool reunion for those two as well -- and used her again in 1990's Wild at Heart and 2006's Inland Empire.

As TV Line points out, having Diane actually appear in person and presumably help Cooper with whatever he may be investigating these days would be a nice tribute to their characters in Blue Velvet, Jeffrey and Sandy, who looked into a small town mystery that ultimately exposed the depraved gang led by Dennis Hopper in that gloriously surreal film.

Lynch and Twin Peaks co-creator Mark Frost have written all the scripts for the new season, with Lynch directing all of what could be a dozen episodes or more. A summer 2017 premiere on Showtime is tentatively in the works.

MacLachlan is the only original cast member whose return has been officially announced, although Sherilyn Fenn appears to be back as well, along with other alumni like David Patrick Kelly, Richard Beymer, Miguel Ferrer, Sheryl Lee, Dana Ashbrook, Michael Horse (seen here in a creepy little teaser), Kimmy Robertson, Mädchen Amick, Joan Chen, Piper Laurie and Russ Tamblyn. New residents may include Amanda Seyfried, Balthazar Getty, Peter Saarsgard and Robert Forster.

What do you think of Laura Dern possibly working with Lynch again, and about possibly seeing the mysterious Diane for the first time?